saintclarefandomcom-20200215-history
Altaïr Ibn-La'Ahad
Altaïr SaintClare (1171 – ?) was a French-born member of the Levantine Brotherhood of Assassins and was SaintClare's first human incarnation. In this regard, Altaïr was the original human who's spirit became SaintClare. He is best known for his instrumental role in the Third Crusade, and under his alias as the hero of the poor of England, Robin Hood. He was the founder the legendary Assassin Order of the Levant. Biography Early Life Birth Altaïr SaintClare was born on December 31st, 1171, in a feudal town in Alcase, a province of the Holy Roman Empire. His mother was the Ministerialis of Alcase named Constance and his father was a member of the Knights Templar named Alighiero SaintClare. The Third Crusade (1189 - 1192) Attack on Masyaf 1190 In 1190, Masyaf was attacked and overrun by Templars, aided by a double agent named Haras. Riding his horse into the village and rescuing a fellow Assassin, Altaïr led the injured man to a bench before meeting with Abbas. Abbas claimed that the Assassins had to fall back and could do nothing for Al Mualim, who was detained in the fortress along with several other Assassin hostages. Altaïr, however, gave Abbas orders to flank the Templars and lead them into the canyon while Altaïr himself rescued Al Mualim. Altaïr made his way to the fortress, killing Templar soldiers and rescuing villagers along the way. Upon arriving at the fortress' gates, Altaïr was greeted by Haras. Taunting the Assassin, Haras closed the gates behind him and went to execute the captured Assassins inside the courtyard with a crossbow. Locked out, Altaïr climbed some scaffolding and reached the top of the fortress walls. From there, he ran along the battlements, jumped onto the tiled roof of a balcony, and assassinated Haras from above, saving Al Mualim. This act earned Altaïr Al Mualim's respect, and he was thereafter elevated to the rank of Master Assassin. Upon hearing this, Abbas spat at Altaïr's feet, whereas Altaïr only sneered back in his first true display of arrogance. Mission to Solomon's Temple July 24th, 1191 Altaïr and his comrades Malik and Kadar Al-Sayf were tasked with retrieving an artifact from the Templars in the Jerusalem Vault beneath the remains of Solomon's Temple. While progressing through the catacombs, Malik broke the first tenet of the Assassin's Creed by killing an innocent man in their path. Altaïr admonished Malik for his recklessness, but Malik arrogantly dismissed him. Upon seeing the archenemy of the Assassins, Robert de Sablé, Malik broke the second tenet of the Creed by confronting Robert directly. Attempting to defend Malik, Altaïr was overpowered and thrown from the temple, leaving Malik and Kadar alone with the Templars. Altaïr escaped from the temple and returned to Masyaf to report his failure to the Order. Skirmish at Masyaf August 11th, 1191 Upon arriving in Masyaf, Altaïr was kindly greeted by Rauf, who told him that Al Mualim was waiting to hear a report on the mission. At the fortress gates, Abbas and Altaïr exchanged insults before Altaïr proceeded to Al Mualim's study, informing the mentor of his failure to acquire the Templar treasure. Soon after, Malik returned with the artifact, alive but alone, and with a heavily injured left arm. He shouted at Altaïr, accusing Altaïr of breaking the Creed and blaming him for Kadar's death. Before further action could be taken, they were informed that Masyaf was under siege. Altaïr and several other Assassins went to the defense of the village, engaging attacking Templars. Although initially successful, they were quickly overpowered; Altaïr thought of staying and fighting until he was defeated, thereby redeeming his actions at Solomon's Temple. However, he quickly realized how large the enemy force was and retreated to the fortress along with the other Assassins. While Al Mualim distracted Robert and the Templars, Altaïr, Rauf and another Assassin each performed a Leap of Faith off the citadel tower and sneaked behind the Templar army. Altaïr dropped a supply of felled logs on the soldiers, crushing many and driving them away from Masyaf. Once the attack was over, the matter of Altaïr's actions in Solomon's Temple was addressed once again. It was decreed that in breaking all three tenets of the Assassin's Creed, and bringing the Templars to Masyaf and endangering the Brotherhood, Altaïr was marked as a traitor to the Assassins. After declaring his judgement to the entire Order, Al Mualim stabbed Altaïr in the stomach with a dagger. Altaïr's unconscious body was dragged to a gorge outside of Masyaf and thrown from the cliffs. He survived, however, albeit with heavy injury. Awakening from his "sleep of the dead", he immediately began a plan of revenge. He resolved to personally end the Third Crusade by assassinating crucial figures on both sides. He quietly sneaked out of Masyaf and rode to Damascus. Assassination of Tamir, Abu'l Nuqoud, and Jubair al Hakim August, 1191 After five days' ride, Altaïr arrived in Damascus. He first planned to assassinate three important figures in the Crusade; Tamir the Generous, a Damascus-based black marketer who had been secretly selling weapons to the Templars, Abu'l Nuqoud, the "Merchant King of Damascus," who was the chief financier of Saladin's army, and Jubair al Hakim, Saladin's head scholar and personal scribe. Going through the city's poor district, Altaïr interrogated informants, pickpocketed letters and maps, and eavesdropped on conversations around him, ultimately acquiring the location of Tamir and Abu'l. In a plaza of the market district, Altaïr witnessed Tamir slaying a business partner, then killed him as he examined nearby stalls. Altaïr proceeded to the merchant's palace where a party was being held. Infiltrating the celebration, Altaïr arrived as Abu'l began giving a speech thanking his guests for attending. However, he soon began lambasting them for their intolerance and ignorance, then revealed he had poisoned the wine they were served. As a number of the revelers fell to the poison, Abu'l ordered his archers to eliminate the rest. Through the panic of the crowd, Altaïr scaled the palace walls, killing several archers in the process, and climbed onto the roof. Jumping down and killing the Merchant King's bodyguard, Altaïr pursued and assassinated his target, setting the city on full alert. Altaïr then moved quickly to assassinate Jubair al Hakim, who had begun burning every book in the city in an attempt to wipe out the history of the land. Jubair had many followers all dressed exactly as he was to hinder assassination attempts. However, Altaïr's previous investigations had revealed where Jubair would be and what he looked like. Before long, the scholar joined the other victims in death, and Altaïr escaped the city guard, leaving for Acre and to pursue his next targets. Assassination of Garnier de Naplouse, Sibrand, and William of Montferrat August, 1191 Proceeding on to Acre, Altaïr planned to cut off the head of Europe's attack forces by killing the Grandmasters of the Knights Hospitalier and the Teutonic Knights; Garnier de Naplouse and Sibrand, as well as William of Montferrat Learning that Garnier was located in the Hospitalier hospital and was trafficking people to Acre in order to experiment on them, Altaïr infiltrated the hospital. There, he found one of Garnier's prisoners attempting to flee. After the man was caught, Garnier ordered his guards to break the prisoner's legs to prevent him from escaping again. Garnier then returned to his usual routine of checking patients and was struck down by Altaïr. With his dying breath, Garnier revealed that he had used the Apple of Eden to conduct his experiments, but after its loss, his progress had slowed. He was also convinced that he was helping the people he experimented on, causing Altaïr to question his own opinion on Garnier's actions. Intimidating one of Garnier's men, Altaïr learned that the hospital's victims were being provided by a local slaver named Talal. After entering the complex of his target, Altaïr was ambushed by Talal's followers while the slaver escaped. Dispatching them, Altaïr chased Talal across the rooftops and through the streets, finally catching up to him and putting a Hidden Blade in his neck. Altaïr moved on to the assassination of William of Montferrat, regent of the city and a lieutenant of Richard the Lionheart. Altaïr gathered information on his target in the city's rich district and learned that William was to meet with King Richard later that day. Approaching the city's fort as William and Richard quarreled outside it, Altaïr waited for the King to leave before scaling the fortress walls. He found William within, berating his men for their perceived failures; when William dismissed them, Altaïr struck from above, killing the Marquese. Sibrand was the Grand Master of the Knights Teutonic and paranoid with fear of the Assassin that had hunted down his Hospitalier ally. After killing William, Altaïr traveled to the city's ports, where he witnessed Sibrand accusing a scholar of being an Assassin before killing him. Afterwards, Sibrand retired to his ship. Altaïr navigated the ports and docked boats, arriving on Sibrand's ship and striking him down. Altaïr then left Acre for Jerusalem. Assassination of Majd Addin Late August, 1191 Arriving at Jerusalem, Altaïr found his next target, Majd Addin, the city's illegitimate ruler, who personally acted as judge, jury, and executioner within its walls. During a public execution, Altaïr made his way through the crowd and onto the stage where Addin stood, killing him and saving an imprisoned Assassin. Robert had recently arrived in Jerusalem as show of friendship between Saracen and Crusaders, and elected to attend the funeral of Majd Addin, heavily guarded by his Templar guards. Arriving at the cemetery, Altaïr hid among the crowd. However, he was quickly singled out and ambushed by the Templars, who had anticipated his arrival. Engaging the Templars and Saracen guards in battle, he fought them off one by one. During this fray, Altaïr heard de Sablé yelling orders at his men, and to his shock realized the voice was that of an English woman. Immediately curious, he defeated the decoy and removed her helm, but was still surprised to see the truth. His shock soon wore off when he learned that she was merely a distraction, meant to keep him at bay while de Sablé traveled to Arsuf in the hopes of uniting the Saracens and Crusaders against the Assassins. Fleeing from the guards, Altaïr rode southward out of the city, then secretly turned northward towards Syria, so as not to be found by the Jerusalem guard. Battle of Arsuf September 7th, 1191 By the time Altaïr reached Arsuf, the engagement between Crusader and Saracen forces had already commenced. Fighting his way through the battlefield, Altaïr arrived at Richard's camp, and was accused of wishing to make an attempt on the king's life. Denying this, Altaïr informed the king of de Sablé's treachery. Though Robert denied the accusations, the king was unconvinced. Leaving the decision to God, Richard ordered a trial by combat between Altaïr and Robert to determine the truth. Altaïr fought Robert and his Templar elites, cutting them down and striking the Grandmaster in the throat. With his dying breaths, de Sablé revealed that Al Mualim was himself a Templar, and that Altaïr had been an unwitting pawn in his quest to hoard the Apple. Richard then congratulated the Assassin on his success, and the two briefly discussed their views on peace before Richard allowed Altaïr to leave Arsuf. Altaïr then hurried to Masyaf to seek his revenge. Battle of Masyaf September 21st, 1191 Arriving at Masyaf, Altaïr found the villagers in a trance, claiming Al Mualim had "led them to the light". Progressing up the hill towards the fortress, Altaïr encountered a group of hypnotized Assassins who, bent as they were to Al Mualim's will, attacked him. Left with no other option, Altaïr engaged them in battle, and managed to slay them all. However, another wave of Assassins entered the fray, heavily outnumbering and threatening to overwhelm him. Fortunately, Malik and several unaffected Assassins arrived and aided Altaïr by throwing knives at his attackers, killing some and causing the rest to flee. Malik asked Altaïr for forgiveness for his previous treachery, which he granted him. Altaïr requested that he distract the hypnotized Assassins outside the fortress, granting access to Al Mualim. Agreeing to his request, Malik and his men left Altaïr to the task of infiltrating the fortress. Searching for his Master in the fortress garden referred to as "Paradise", Altaïr found himself caught and bound by the Apple's power. Seeing Al Mualim on a balcony overhead, he demanded an explanation. Al Mualim then revealed he had used the Apple to end the Crusades by eliminating its leaders. He had also taken control of the minds of the people to attain their obedience, ensuring absolute peace. Al Mualim then used the power of the Apple to create illusions of the nine Templars Altaïr had killed. After defeating them, Altaïr was once again bound by the Apple's power and Al Mualim confronted him personally, creating multiple copies of himself to aid in his fight. Faced with this second illusion, Altaïr went on the defensive, striking them as they attacked one by one. As Altaïr finally singled his Master out, Al Mualim bound him once again. He explained that though he sought peace like Robert, he wanted the Apple for himself, and thus the Templar needed to die. He also explained that he had tried to use the Apple to force Altaïr into obedience, but failed due to Altaïr's mental strength. Altaïr and Al Mualim dueled for a final time. After a lengthy battle, Altaïr managed to defeat his Master and mortally wound him with his Hidden Blade. After Al Mualim uttered his last words, challenging Altaïr's strength of character and ability to destroy the Apple, the Piece of Eden rolled from his lifeless hand and activated. Standing before a vast holographic image that projected from the orb, Altaïr was soon joined by Malik and his men, and together they observed the projection: a map of the world indicating the location of other Pieces of Eden. The Rebellion September 21st, 1191 Immediately after killing Al Mualim, Altaïr carried the former mentor's body through the fortress and past a shocked crowd. Suspicious that the Apple might somehow return Al Mualim to life, Altaïr decided to burn the body, enraging onlookers. Though he attempted to explain his actions, many of the Assassins, including Abbas, believed he had staged a coup to usurp the position of Mentor. Several attacked Altaïr in response, and in the confusion Abbas stole the Apple and fled. When Abbas climbed the watchtower and used the Apple, it proved too much for him to control and began draining the life from him and several other Assassins. Altaïr quickly confronted Abbas, defeating him and reclaiming the Apple. As Abbas pleaded for forgiveness, Altaïr stared at the Apple, asking the artifact if it would sooner grant people knowledge or lead them to destruction. In the aftermath of the skirmish, Altaïr stayed true to the Creed, ensuring that none of his rebelling brothers were killed or harmed. After subduing the rebels, he convinced them of Al Mualim's guilt and his own ability to lead the Order. Successful in his attempts, Altaïr won the hearts and minds of his Assassin brethren. Revelations (1228 - 12??) Return to Masyaf 1228 When Altaïr arrived in Masyaf in 1228, he was greeted by Swami, a former apprentice whom he disliked. Altaïr asked why he had not been greeted by Rauf as he had requested in his letters, and Swami claimed that Rauf had died of fever during their absence. He led Altaïr to the half-abandoned citadel, which had been stripped of the life it had under Altaïr's rule. Instead of being directed to the Master's tower as Altaïr had expected, they were guided to a smaller room in the right wing of the castle. When Altaïr asked after Sef, Swami responded that he had traveled to Alamut with his family. Swami further explained that Malik had been thrown into prison, and in the absence of a Mentor, a council had been formed to lead the Order with Abbas Sofian at its head. Altaïr, not trusting the situation, asked Darim to travel to Alamut, and he left to retrieve his brother. The next day, Altaïr went to the Master's tower to meet the council, and found it consisted of the most weak-minded people in the Order. Altaïr told them of his travels in Mongolia, after which Abbas explained what had happened to Sef. He had been killed by Malik several weeks before, after Sef discovered that Malik intended to usurp the position of Mentor. Altaïr, furious, demanded that control of the Order be returned to him, as the statutes of the Brotherhood decreed it. Backed by the manipulated council, Abbas replied that they no longer did. Confronting Abbas 1228 Altaïr began reflecting on the pain he had caused Malik in his life, wondering if Malik truly hated him. He resolved to infiltrate the Masyaf dungeon and rescue his friend. Evading patrolling and sleeping guards, Altaïr sneaked into the prison and found Malik in one of the cells, skinny to the bone, hair long and beard overgrown. Altaïr brought Malik back to their residence, where he revealed that Abbas had staged a coup two years before, had Sef killed, and framed Malik for the murder. Malik regretted that he had not been a better leader, claiming that Altaïr would not have allowed any of this to happen. Altaïr then waited until he was asleep before leaving to confront Abbas. Arriving in the fortress, Altaïr faced Abbas, who was soon joined by Swami bearing a burlap sack. Abbas delivered the parcel to Altaïr, showing that it contained the head of Malik, whom Swami had executed after they left their quarters. Abbas asked Altaïr why he had infiltrated the prison, which caused the other Assassins present to doubt Altaïr's motives. After a heated conversation, Abbas demanded that Altaïr surrender the Apple of Eden. In exchange, Altaïr would be told the true circumstances of Sef's death. To Maria's shock, Altaïr agreed, extracting the Apple from his robes. As Swami approached to take it, he whispered that he had told Sef before his execution that Altaïr had ordered his death. Altaïr became furious, and his rage was sent into the Apple. Its power froze Swami and Altaïr assassinated him. Although Abbas ordered his men to attack Altaïr and claim the Apple, they were reluctant to do so, fearful of the artifact's power. Briefly tempted to use the Apple to destroy himself and all around him, Altaïr instead chose to flee, escaping Masyaf with Darim. Reclaiming His Title 1247Category:Person __NOINDEX__